Welcome to ITCH - the Ipswich triathlon club hand-out - for Autumn 2010...

Triathlon England Eastern Region AGM 2010 - Triathlon England members are reminded that the region AGM is on 13th November at Barcelo Hinckley Island Hotel, Hinckley, Leicestershire LE10 3JA.

The ITCH League

You should already have received a mailing with the results of the ITCH League. To remind you, unless any late IM results come in, our league winners are Dave Copland and Amanda Mallett.

Congratulations!

Our own events - Framlingham

Framlingham race director Matt Dye writes:  The Junior event went very well again, a huge thanks to everyone who helped, special thanks to Simon Palmer for another year of assisting me with setting up, event advice/guidance/support and of course packing all away for next year ! Some feedback is attached and you can publish any you like.

• Many thanks for a well organised event today. I hope you are pleased with how it went.
• Sunday was Abi's first triathlon, and ours as parents! We would like to thank you and all the Ipswich club for such an enjoyable and well organised event.
• Thank you so much ... really enjoyed it. It was a great event and really well organised.
• Thank you for such a good day on Sunday - the boys really enjoyed it.

Date is booked for next year already - Sunday 28th Aug 2011 - put the date in your diary please all you kind helpers !

Our own events - reminder

Please remember that when you renew your subscriptions you will be asked to commit to volunteering for one of our events. Mary will say more about this at the AGM but we will be monitoring participation more closely in 2011.
The planned dates are Culford 24th July and Framlingham 28th August, with the duathlon date still to be settled (Nik is trying to make sure we don't clash with the Ipswich half-marathon).

Winter cross-country league & championships

John Wankowski will be co-ordinating our cross-country, with help as needed from Simon Palmer and others. There are at least three different cross-country activities in which we can participate.

The Suffolk Winter League County Cross Country - a series of "turn up, register & run" races.

For these league fixtures, just turn up. If this follows the usual format, individual scoring will be based on four from the five events. Entry £3 payable at each event. Senior events usually start at 11am, junior start times will be subject to each individual hosting club. There have been some late changes to the schedule which is now looking like:

31 Oct 2010 – Framlingham Castle
05 Dec 2010 – Woodbridge, Sutton VIllage Hall

23 Jan 2011 – Stowmarket, Haughley Park (proposed, rescheduled from 16 Jan)
06 Feb 2011 - Bury St Edmunds, Nowton Park (rescheduled from 21 Nov)

20 Feb 2011 – Bungay, Ditchingham

More information to follow as and when, or you try asking John, or look at the Stowmarket Striders website or the SCAA diary. The league fixtures are raced as club members and you should wear club kit.

Eastern Athletic Association Cross Country Championships will be held on
Sunday 28th November at Hillyfields, Colchester, Essex.

Senior Men 12km, starts at 13:10. Senior Women 6km, starts at 14:10

This has to be entered in advance.
If you are interested in racing please enter via Simon Palmer so that he can register you as part of our team: six to score in Senior Men, three in Senior Women. Simon will need to know your name and date of birth for the EAA entry form, and will also need a cheque - made payable to "EAA" - for £5.00 to cover your entry.
Simon needs all this BY the end of October.

Juniors: Isabel will contact relevant juniors with a view possibly to putting in a team in those categories where we have enough members.

Suffolk County Athletics Cross Country Championships is scheduled to be held on
Sunday 9th January; 12km for men, 6k for women. This will also require entry in advance, so please watch for notices as soon as we know more. (Some list the venue as Ickworth Park.)

Please note that you must wear club kit for cross country otherwise you may find yourself disqualified.

Virgin London Marathon 2011

Each year, Ipswich triathlon club applies for UK:A "club places" in the London marathon. If successful, we allocate these to members based on a number of criteria:
 

-          are you “first claim”

-          are you fully paid up

-          have you fulfilled your “volunteer” commitments

-          have you tried for, but failed to get, a place in the open ballot

If more applications are received than we have places, then we consider other factors such as whether you had a place last year, and how long you’ve been active within the club.

We now have a closed list of applicants, but we will not know until November whether or not the club will get any places.

Charlie Stannett - itch@ipswich-tri.org

Any club member is eligible to stand for any committee position. All you need is enthusiasm, plus a club member to propose you and another to second. The Committee meets approx 10 times per year on a Thurs eve, after training. For more info please talk to either myself or to Simon Palmer (Club Secretary).

I would encourage as many members as possible to turn up for the AGM (details above). This is your opportunity to find out what the Committee has been up to, to have your say on future plans (and there’s food).

Sunday Cycling Group Schedule

Here’s the schedule for the next few weeks. We’ve relocated to Woodbridge as it’s closer for most of the regular riders and offers some new rural routes. It’s time to start that winter training!

Sun 24 Oct meet 36 Catherine Road Woodbridge: (from A12, take 3rd left off Hasketon Road).
8.45am for 9am departure. 30-35 miles.

Sun 31 Oct No ride as X-Country at Fram

Sun 7 Nov meet 36 Catherine Road Woodbridge 8.45am for 9am departure. 35-40 miles.

For further info contact: Mary Skelcher or Michelle Constable

mary.skelcher@btinternet.com
chelleyjc@yahoo.co.uk

Christmas Party!

This year’s Tri Club Xmas ‘do’ will take place at The Greyhound on Henley Road, Friday 10th December at 7pm.

As always, partners/lovers/friends welcome (except Scrooge).

Food ordering will be ‘pay as you go’ from the Greyhound’s normal menu. No need to book or pre-order (this works better for us and for the chef). Just turn up, eat and/or drink and be merry.

The committee normally meets at Greshams on the SECOND Thursday of each month.

Amanda storming home at Cambridge

How did you get into triathlon?
After repeated injuries, I concluded that I was not able to run five days a week. So I turned to triathlon as a way of trying to compete injury free. Also at the same time I was working in the BT gym at Adastral Park so had come across people like Charlie Stannett and Nik Bestow.

What is your main motivation and/or inspiration?
To give me a reason/excuse to train. I also enjoy planning my training schedules.

What does your family think about you & triathlon?
My daughter thinks I'm a hero but I'm sure my husband doesn't understand. He feels sport is a waste of time.

What has been your happiest sporting moment?
Finishing my first triathlon at Culford and discovering how much fun triathlon could be.

And what about your worst?
Falling off my bike at this year's Norwich triathlon which made me feel a fool as other competitors went past me.

How much training do you do fit in (on each discipline)?
I usually do around 10 hours per week. Broken down as a couple of hours swimming, an hour or so strength training, anything up to two hours running and the rest of the time cycling.

What is your favourite training session?
At the moment I’ve been enjoying the Sunday rides with other club members. I also enjoy interval sessions running or cycling.

Apart from triathlon, what are your other obsessions?
I'm currently completing a Diploma in Health and Social Care with the Open University so when I'm not training I'm usually studying.

How do you indulge yourself on a rest day?
Having a lie-in which means getting up 7.30 rather than 5.45!

What are your plans for the near future?
I've recently undergone a bladder operation so I want to get back into full training in the next couple of months. Then I may do a spring marathon and various local Olympic distance events during the summer.

Tell me about your bike!
My racing bike is a Bianchi Luna, which I bought from Charlie. Last year I had some new wheels built by Mick Madgett and I seem to be faster this year!

You can follow e-mail Kate via kate@ipswich-tri.org or follow her at www.twitter.com/ironfishy

The junior club has had a consistent weekly programme since February. As the winter approaches we will be continuing indoors for strength and stamina training.

We aim to run one meeting a month with a speaker who we hope will also speak to seniors at a second session. This will cost £5 for adults while the children’s sessions will be £2 as we don’t have to pay for water during the winter.

We have been able to offer tasters to early years starting in late September for six weeks. Last year this found us two new loyal members from the sessions we did under the auspices of British Tri.

During the next few weeks I will be at the Saturday morning Woolverstone sessions. Anyone other than juniors wanting coached sessions please get in touch: I know some of you have indicated you wanted some analysis of your stroke. Just email me and let me know when you will be at what session(s).

Isabel an be contacted by e-mail to juniors@ipswich-tri.org

(See Isabel's offer of coaching above)

Open water swimming has now been suspended for the autumn and winter.

If you want to be on a ring round list for notification of changes at short notice then let Greg Allen have your number. Greg is on 07501 464143 or e-mail greg.jamie@talktalk.net

For further info e-mail mary.skelcher@btinternet.com or chelleyjc@yahoo.co.uk

Please watch out for e-mails/Twitter updates about forth-coming Thursday sessions.

I assume that Neil Catling is still thinking about doing the Exmoor Beast again. He had wanted to know if anyone else is thinking about it. Contact Neil by e-mail to neil@ncatling.co.uk or mobile 07876786302.

Rick Berry and I ventured out to the Vitruvian this year & met up with a few other club members over the weekends activities.

The swim was foggy and was a two lap (with getting out) affair which worked well if you stayed on course !

The bike ride was still misty, dull & dampish, some rolling hills which were OK unless you were up the inside of the traffic jams and couldn't pass other bikes, I squeezed past one chap, who I obviously surprised, as he toppled off into the verge still clipped in, honest gov I didn't touch him ! It was fun lighting up the many speed cameras into the villages, I'm sure the fog affected them as some strange numbers were displayed at times. The single feeding station on the bike caught me out as I was through it before I could stock up, so race plan had to be adjusted and narnies and jaffa's were scooped up on the run feeding stations, not ideal to stomach while running.

The dodgy knee was starting to complain on the run but the high fives with Jim, Rick, Rab, Clive & Chris helped distract from the pain, I even grabbed the microphone to get Ipswich a special mention on the run turnaround point ;-)

All in all a great event with good support for the red & black, would recommend it, an hour quicker PB's for me & Rick compared to last years' Germany 70.3

For full results see www.pacesetterevents.com

This new event had sat on Entrycentral all summer attracting so few competitors, that I figured there would be plenty of space in the pool, and duly entered.

On the day, a mere 25 or so souls lined up poolside. At least the wait from registration closure to swim start was mercifully brief, and a generous one minute gap between each swimmer was possible. Chelmsford Pool runs to 33.3 metres, so a 400m swim packs into a tidy 12 lengths which, if your turn is as dodgy as mine, works out much better than 16 lengths of a 25m pool.

The 5k run course was interesting to say the least. A death-defying sprint across a busy main road near the start (and finish) certainly got the juices flowing. The next couple of hundred metres involved dodging baby buggies and bag-laden families in a street teeming with saturday aftenoon shoppers - arguably an even riskier environment than the road crossing. But the course soon picked up the River Chelmer towpath, crossing footbridges then snaking across a few fields (complete with surprised looking horses) before doubling back on itself to repeat the shopping centre/traffic dodging experience.

Marshalling and signage was sketchy (perhaps due to the event being staged by a private company?) causing one poor lad to twice take wrong turns, which will have seriously affected his time and placing. Overall, the standard of organisation was not the best but may improve if the event is repeated. The director stated that he plans to stage the event again next year, possibly in both spring and summer.

As a novice triathlete whose weakest discipline is the cycling, I thought an aquathlon would play to my strengths. Yet it felt very strange going straight from swim to run with no bike ride in between. Still, although at time of writing the results have not yet been posted (confirming the hit and miss nature of the event staging), with only three competitors in my age group I will attain my first ever top three placing!

And there are far worse ways to spend a Saturday afternoon...shopping, anyone?

I don't have any race reports for these events - the final ones to count in the ITCH league - although I gather Steve dB has a problem in the leg department during the Saturday's off-road sprint event (in which Dave Copland won his age group - well done), and that the water for Sunday's standard event tasted pretty foul.

Note - I've calculated the bike splits from the component elements on the official results.

I have no idea who was in the relay team "In your dreams".

The winning combination of glorious sunshine and cool autumn air no doubt helped, but I rather enjoyed this new addition to the racing calendar.

The event was staged by born2tri, and held in Great Notley Country Park, just south of Braintree. The organisers had limited the field to 100, a good size for the course, as it turned out. Two 4km runs sandwiched a 21km bike ride - the first run was around a section of the country park, on a mixture of gravel paths and grass. Some of the grass was quite long, and some of the paths a little muddy, giving the course a slightly 'cross country' feel. Towards the end of the lap the run took us up and down a small, sharp hill then into transition one. The bike course consisted of two laps, largely on quiet, gently undulating country lanes. A not insignficant portion was on the busy A131 dual carriageway - although the 9:00 a.m. sunday start meant there was little traffic to worry about, whilst three sweeping roundabouts added to the fun.

I got caught out on the second run lap as I was holding a little in reserve for a second hill climb which never came - the second run followed the same route as the first, barring the hill, which was sadly omitted. Still, it meant I had the legs for a sprint finish.

Overall, this was not as testing as our own Ipswich Duathlon, but fun nonetheless, and a fairly fast course too.

You must wear club kit to score points in the ITCH league (although discretion is used where, for example, you've tried to get kit but it hadn't arrived in time, or where you have a charity place which mandates you wear the charity's kit) and members of UK:A clubs are supposed to wear club kit anyway (e.g. for the cross-country series).
 

Although you can still e-mail kit man John on kit@ipswich-tri.org it is probably easier for you to ring him at home on Ipswich (01473) 711592 - but please think about the time of day. John will normally make arrangements to hand over kit at a mutually convenient Thursday evening. If you e-mail or write to John, please include your own full name, address & other contact details.

Kit vouchers - IMPORTANT
Please remember that kit vouchers expire at the end of the calendar year following the year of issue, i.e. 2009 Vouchers expire 31 December 2010. The year of issue and expiry date are shown on each voucher.

They are a good weight if a little snug around the neck and pretty good value at £21 each. If you're interested contact Steve direct. He will accept kit vouchers toward the price.

Steve can be contacted on 07795 564322 or stevedb@btsgroupuk.com

• The Maldon Triathlon - Sprint & Olympic distance - 10th July 2011 - Promenade Park, Maldon
• Fambridge Yacht Haven Middle Distance Triathlon - 1.9k/98k/18k - 24th July 2011 - North Fambridge
• Waterside Long Distance Tri - 2.8km/128km/28km - 7th August 2011 - Bradwell-on-Sea

Jamie describes himself as a triathlete based in South Woodham Ferrers, Essex

Time Trial bike 53cm used for 4 races only. Black. (includes Zipp 404 clincher wheelset) £1400 ono

• Pro-Lite Espresso 53cm Black Frame; Pro-Lite Carbon Forks
• Richey 50/32 Compact Chainring; Richey Cranks 172.5mm; Look Keo Carbon Pedals (if required)
• Shimano Ultegra 11-23 Rear Mech
• Shimano Ultegra Brakes
• Zipp 404 Wheels, Schwalbe Ultemo Tyres
• Pro-Lite Saddle
• Cane Creek Headset, Richie Stem
• T2 Wing, Low-Profile Tri-Bars; Shimano 105 End-bar Gear Changers; Profile QS2 Brake Levers

Call Cath or Kevin Brooks on 01473 232004 / mob 07905895070

Lady's Quintanaroo superfull wetsuit size 14 (large) - worn 3 times only but alas too big. £130 ono
Call Cath or Kevin Brooks on 01473 232004 / mob 07905895070

Lady's good quality Snugg Lite wetsuit size 12-14 (med) - would fit hight 5ft 6 -7, measurements 38"chest ,28"waist, 38" hip. worn 2 seasons but only 6 times! £150 ono
Call Cath or Kevin Brooks on 01473 232004 / mob 07905895070

Ladies Snugg Stealth wetsuit. Approx size 10 / Height 5ft 7"/ Weight 62kg. £80. Tel Mary 01728 660034.

For Sale (older adverts - will be removed unless advertisers ask for them to be kept in)

Trek racing bike
1.1 Alpha in superb condition. Only used twice, blue, Shimano group set. Current owner 5ft 10 1/2in tall, inside leg 34-35in.  Asking £480.00 but all reasonable offers considered. Contact  Carol Green on carolpurple8@hotmail.com or 07719316528 (after the weekend).

Giant OCR 10 speed with extra Tri front end
Exellent condition, only ridden 10 times. Small frame 44cm suit small male female (owner 5ft 8in).
Ten speed 105 levers and Ultegra rear mech, Ultegra 6500 front mech chainset-170mm with 10 spd rings 53/38 Carbon wrap seatpin, flite saddle pro bars 42cm ctc pro stem 120cm, spdsl pedals 105 brakes, Mavic aksiums 12/25 Conti GP3000 tyres.
Most bits are new or in good condition. (Polar sensor and mount not included)
Also Tri/TT front end Bontrager 42cm ctc base bar, bontrager 80mm stem Deda tri bars, Dura ace 10 spd shifters.
Would suit Road rider who dabbles in Tri/TT or vice versa £650 ono.
Contact alan.french@virgin.net or on 07906 624829 or 01394 388760 (Melton)
Photos on http://www.flickr.com/photos/14123708@N03/?saved=1[/size][/size]

Profile Design CGT bars - carbon clip-on shorty aerobars "ITU approved for Olympic distance triathlons which require draft-legal Aerobars" (see http://www.profile-design.com/profile-design/products/aerobars/carbon-aerobars/cgt.html for picture & spec). Hardly ever used (it's a long story).
Current price new seems to be around £150 from TriUK so offers (still) invited around £70. Contact Charlie Stannett charlie@stannett.com or 01206-298888.

Wanted

Race reports - thanks to everybody who has written items. Please continue to send them in, to itch@ipswich-tri.org - thanks.